Billfish Conservation Act of 2011

House and Senate Bills are Huge Step to Conserve Billfish

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On July 29, 2011 Senator David Vitter (R-LA) and Congressman Jeff Miller (R-FL) teamed up with 11 additional Members of Congress to introduce bi-partisan legislation in the Senate and House—The Billfish Conservation Act of 2011—that will help restore billfish populations that are badly depleted by commercial overfishing. By protecting these magnificent fish from overfishing, this legislation will lead to the long-overdue recovery of billfish.”

Several billfish species are in serious decline, according to a recent global assessment by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN),” said Rob Kramer, President of the International Game Fish Association. “This is a wonderful step by Congress to recover billfish and create new jobs in the sportfishing and marine economy.”

According to Ken Hinman, President of the National Coalition for Marine Conservation, “The Billfish Conservation Act of 2011 makes it clear that the future of billfish is not for sale.” Hinman added, “Hats off to Congressman Jeff Miller, Senator David Vitter, and the bi-partisan co-sponsors of the legislation for making sure there will always be plenty of billfish in the sea, for this and future generations of anglers.”

In the Senate, the legislation (S 1451) was introduced by Senator David Vitter (R-LA), Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), Senator John McCain (R-AZ), and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). It would prohibit the sale of all billfish (marlin, sailfish and spearfish) in the United States, while still allowing for traditional fisheries within the State of Hawaii and the Pacific Insular Area. Swordfish are not included in the prohibition.

Marlin, sailfish and spearfish, collectively called billfish, are some of the world’s most majestic marine fish. They are apex predators that play a critical role in maintaining healthy ocean ecosystems. Billfish are also highly esteemed by recreational anglers the world over, and catch-and-release fisheries for these species support many marine jobs and generate billions of dollars to the U.S. economy.

Unfortunately, the world’s billfish stocks are seriously imperiled from non-U.S. commercial fishing. Earlier this month, the IUCN announced that, as a result of these population declines, blue and white marlin are now threatened and striped marlin is nearly threatened with extinction.

Billfish are primarily caught as by-catch in non-U.S. commercial tuna and swordfish fisheries, but the by-catch is harvested and sold internationally, with the United States serving as the world’s largest importer of billfish. For nearly two decades, the U.S. has had a ban on the sale of Atlantic-caught billfish, yet no such ban exists for Pacific-caught billfish. This Pacific Ocean loophole also creates a black market for Atlantic-caught billfish because there is no way to effectively enforce the distinction. Other countries continue to sell billfish in the U.S. through this loophole. The Billfish Conservation Act of 2011 closes that loophole.

The commercial sale of billfish in the U.S. contributes very little to our commercial fishing industry. Billfish account for just 0.07% of the total annual revenue from all commercial fishing in the U.S. There are many sustainable alternatives for restaurants and retailers to offer in place of billfish; thus most restaurants have taken marlin and other billfish off the menu.